Free
by iGaoch
Summary: Jonas's eyes closed as sleep took him, but not before he heard, "I am Gregory... Keeper of Memories." Disclaimer: I do not own "The Giver". I do own this story tho, and my new Characters so, no plagiarizing! Review if you want.


Ch.24

Gregory slowly stopped the sled with a sharp order to his lead dog, Janine. His whole body was covered with a thick coat along with his face except for a pair of thick goggles.

As the sled slowed, he forced his eyes to look more closely from behind his goggles at what he was seeing at the bottom of the hill.

His eyes widen with shock as he quickly pulled out a fur blanket from the bag next to him and ran over to what he had been staring at. He nearly tripped over the bodies when he went over and scooped it up.

He cursed to himself when he saw it was actually two bodies. A baby, no less than a year old, and a teenage boy.

"Stop the sleds!" He yelled as he saw other sleds like his, packed with boxes on their sleds being pulled by dogs. There was only one sleigh and it stopped directly behind his.

Everyone stayed back, except for the man driving the sleigh.

"What's the hold up, Gregory?" Shane's question died on his lips when he saw the bodies shaped figure in Gregory's arms covered with a thick fur blanket. "What the-"

Gregory ran past him to Shane's sleigh and put the two bodies there. "No time to explain! We have to get them to Rose's! I felt life in them!"

Shane didn't ask any questions as he got into his sleigh and with a quick command, the sleigh moved forward.

Gregory looked after the sleigh as he got back to his own sled and signaled that it was okay to go.

The barking of dogs could be heard from the town of Ranok as people came out to welcome them back.

Gregory let the other sleds past him as he looked back up towards the hill when he thought he heard music. Maybe it was just an echo, he thought as he turned back.

Then something caught his eyes and he looked back to the hill. Sleds were appearing on top of the hill, music was coming from the first sled.

Gregory only raised a hand in acknowledgement before turning away and going into Ranok.

* * *

Jonas could have sworn he had died and gone to Elsewhere.

I failed Gabe, he thought to himself as an emotion of guilt and pain took over him.

Memories of what had happened since the day he had told his parents about his fear of the Ceremony of Twelve passed through him, like a memory from the Giver.

He saw himself telling his family about his being apprehensive for the upcoming Ceremony of Twelve in December. He remembered his parents' response and how they said it'll turn out okay.

The memory left as soon as it came and was replaced by him going and doing volunteer hours for the home of Old and then having his dream of Fiona and in that memory, he could see her fiery red hair. It turned into his parents giving him the Pills and saying he was feeling, Stirring.

The memory was quickly changed to him sitting with the feeling of fear and embarrassment at being skipped over during the Ceremony of Twelve and then standing up there with the Elders and being told about being selected to be the Receiver of Memory. His new rules as Receiver of Memory and it telling him he may lie along with being rude.

It turned to him meeting the Giver for the first time after riding bikes with Fiona and getting his first memory of snow and learning about Sameness and climate control. Then he remembered the pain of sun burn as the Giver tried to explain why they choose to stop sun shine along with the other weathers.

The memories seemed to be rushing now as if he was running out of time.

He was talking with Fiona about her first day of training, to the Giver explaining about colors and the color red along with the memory of rainbow. Of his conversation about Sameness being unfair and that colors were beautiful.

The memories he had thought he had left behind when he left the community all rushed back to him. He saw the memory of grandparents and love, war and death, blood and broken bones. They all jumped around in his mind, faster and faster.

Then it slowed down and revealed the memory of his father's lying to him and of his father releasing the twin. When he found out it was Rosemary who was the previous Receiver. His being out casted by his old friends when he realized that he could no longer be around people who didn't understand what emotions were.

The memories seemed to be getting weaker as he saw him and the Giver's conversation as they planned to escape the community and an over baring grief flowed through his body and seemed to flow right out into something else. He felt the same feeling when he saw him and Gabe escaping and then as they kept traveling farther, the feeling of starvation and fear and hopelessness seemed to flow through his body and into something else.

Jonas felt a feeling of panic when he realized all his painful memories were becoming like that, like it was being sucked from his mind.

He tried to move his body, but couldn't. It was as if something was weighing him down. He opened his mouth, but it made no movement to his command. All the memories were suddenly running through his head at a high speed.

Suddenly he woke with a gasp and sat up right on a soft mattress. He was breathing hard as he tried to open his eyes and wiped the sweat from his head.

His breathing slowed down when he shook his head to focus on where he was.

He looked up into a pair of worn and tired ice blue eyes.

"So you're awake, Jonas." The man's voice sounded gentle, but Jonas felt the hard edge to it.

Jonas didn't speak as he tried to calm his heart beat. The man was sitting next to him, sleeves up to his elbow as if he had been working. He looked worn out, his short black hair was a mess as if he'd ran his hand through it many times.

Something occured to him and he nearly shouted, "Where's Gabe!"

The man's face had no expression as he studied the pale eyes teenager. "If you're talking about that baby that was with you, Rose has him. You both were in bad shape when I found you. The baby, Gabe, needs more care than you do."

He slowly stood up and ran a hand through his hair. "Look kid. Next time you want to run away from where ever you ran away from, make a better plan."

He walked slowly to the door and staggered when he reached the door knob.

"Are you okay?" Jonas asked uncertainly as he tried to figure out the man.

The man nodded slowly. "It just drains me that's all. Don't worry about Gabe, Jonas. Rose doesn't let anyone so young die."

Jonas couldn't help, but flinch from the last word. Then he realized something. "How do you know my name?"

The man looked back at him with an odd look. "What do you mean? You were there with me when I went through your memories."

"You did what?" Jonas gulped down. "It was you that was... Taking my emotions?"

The man turned fully to Jonas as they stared at each other.

"Emotions? Hmph. I've heard people call it lots of things, never emotions. Nice choice of words, kid." His voice sounded harsh and unbelieving, but he had a small smile on his face that made Jonas relaxed.

"From the look of your memories, you must be a _Runner_." The way he said, Runner, made Jonas shift uneasily. Then the man's eyes gentle. "It's been a long time since we've found a Runner willing to escape the _Community_."

He said Community with the same tone when he said Runner. Jonas felt a strong hatred towards the two words.

The man smiled warmly so suddenly that Jonas felt himself smile. "Don't worry. You're among the Free now. This little town or community as you will call it, is Ranok. We're one of the largest Free world left."

"Free world? Ranok? What is a Runner? What do you mean by Free?" Jonas had a million questions pop into his mind. "What did you mean you went through my memories? Is this Elsewhere?"

The man chuckled softly to himself at the boy's eagerness. "I thought Runners had no emotions. You seem to be proving me wrong, Jonas."

The man went over to him and laid a hand on Jonas's chest and pushed the boy down and pulled the blanket at Jonas's feet to his chest. "I will answer any of your questions when you are better."

"But I'm okay!" As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Jonas felt drossiness hit him.

The man suddenly laughed, but it disappeared as fast as it came. "Rest first, Runner for you are Free."

The man turned to leave and before Jonas let his eyes drop close, he quickly asked, "What is your name?"

The man went back to Jonas's side and rested a hand over his head and slowly Jonas's eyes closed as sleep took him, but not before he heard, "I am Gregory... Keeper of Memories."

* * *

Gregory left the sleeping boy behind and closed the door as he turned and faced the brown hair man pacing in the living room.

Shane's brown eyes met Gregory's ice blue ones and he quickly looked away. "Gregory! Did he wake up?"

Gregory didn't say anything until he sat down on an arm chair facing the big open window. It was still snowing hard, but the bright red, blue, yellow, and green lights that hung around the oak trees were still visible.

"Yes," Gregory replied slowly as he looked out at the snow.

Shane waited patiently for Gregory to go on. He was used to Gregory's slow talking and the silence that always followed the young, but worn man.

"The boy's name is Jonas and the baby is Gabe. They're both Runners, but are no harm to us." He paused and ran a hand through his black hair. "Going through his memories was... Something I have never experienced before."

Shane stiffened at this. "What do you mean?"

Gregory was one of the five Keepers of Memories. He is also part of the counsel for Travels and Supplies.

"He... Had memories that should no longer be," his voice trailed off. "I saw war through his eyes for the first time, Shane. I've seen death and blood and felt pain before, but I have never seen war."

Shane suddenly began to pace again, a look of shock on his face. "War? How is that possible! He's a Runner. Runners are so scared of reality that they created _Sameness_." He spat out Sameness. "They got rid of colors to take away choices so no one will ever make the wrong choice and destroy the _'perfect' _community!" His voice grew louder as anger entered his tone. "They think killing someone -wait, I forgot- they release the weak." Anger shone through his face as he stopped pacing and his hands shook.

Shane didn't notice as Gregory stood up and walked towards him. "The Community is all, but a big joke! War! They'll never have wars. It would be easy to take them over, yet we don't. Get rid of the boy Gregory! If anyone else learns of war, it'll ruin the peace we've held on for so long!"

Suddenly Gregory was standing in front of him. "Shane, are you telling me to get rid of Jonas so that no one else will get his memory of war?"

Before Shane can say anything, Gregory's hand reached out and touched the angry man's chest. "Let me take it away."

It was a command, not a request. Without hesitation Shane let go of his anger and both of them felt the hot boiling emotion travel up and down Shane's body as Shane trembled from the emotion transplant.

Shane's anger turned red. It was like silk red strings moving like veins in Shane's body. Both of them watched all the red strings on Shane's body travel towards the same direction beneath Gregory's palm. Both men watched as it seeped into Gregory's arm and it traveled up his arm, slowly spreading like poison into Gregory's body.

Gregory trembled as he felt the strong anger mixed with unexplainable hatred enter his body. He slowly calmed himself down as he looked up at Shane.

Shane was no longer trembling nor did he look angry. Instead he looked relaxed as if a big weight was taken from him. "When will it come back?"

Gregory shook his head to keep the anger down. "Maybe a day or two?" His voice shook with anger even as he tried not to let it seep through him.

He raised a trembling hand through his hair. "You know it's wrong to kill because of that reason. I know you're scared of his memory of war coming out and not just hurting people, but making them realize that it'll raise the matter of rather we should go at war with the Communities." He breathed out slowly as he tried to grasp the anger inside of him now.

Shane felt guilt eat at him as he watched Gregory handling his anger and hatred. "I'm sorry Gregory. You didn't-"

Gregory's hand waved his words away. "I'm a Keeper. It's my job plus you know I love you. It isn't pleasant to watch you deal with your anger."

Shane nodded as he helped Gregory sit down. It always tired Keepers to do emotion transplant. Almost as tiring when they walk through someone's memories.

"Don't do any Keeper duty for a while. You just walked through that Runner's memories and transplanted my emotion into you..."

Gregory nodded as he laid back and let his shoulders sag. "We're no better than the Community if we kill a boy for a reason based on paranoia." He breathed out slowly and rested his head back.

Shane turned to the door when someone walked in. Gregory didn't care and closed his eyes. Shane smiled slowly when he saw who had just walked in.

The intruder was wearing thick grey snow pants and a matching coat. A hood covered the person's face along with a pair of silver goggles.

"Hello Tracker Alicia," Shane said as he watched the twenty year old woman take off her hood and left her goggles hanging around her neck.

Alicia smiled brightly as she went over and hugged Shane. "Shane!" Her smile fell when she saw Gregory and she went to his side and knelt beside him. "What's wrong with Keeper Gregory?" She shot an accusing look towards Shane directions and he flushed.

"I'm just tired Alicia," Gregory's weary voice said as he raised his head to look at the Tracker. He smiled slowly at her. "If I'm not wrong, you were tracking those two Runners?"

It was Alicia's turn to flush. She has just become a Tracker and her first big mission was to find the two Runners that were trying to escape the Community. "My team and I had their locations when they left, but no one told us about the search planes and the fact that they also had heat seekers." She tucked a brownish blonde strand of hair behind her ear, her green eyes looking up at Gregory with respect. "After the planes left, you'll think it'll be easy to locate them with our own heat seeking planes- It was so strange Gregory!"

She suddenly changed subject and Gregory had to smile. It was typical Alicia to be talking about one thing then going onto another. He listened anyway and shared an amuse look with Shane.

Alicia continued. "They had no animals! None at all! I know I should have been expecting it, but I thought some of the other Trackers were just playing around about them having no animals!" Then she paused. "It was strange. How did they avoid their Community's and our heat seekers? It has never failed us only on you and the other Keepers since you're the only ones who can recall the memory of cold."

Gregory closed his eyes and tried to remember something he had seen in Jonas's memory. He saw Jonas holding the baby Gabe in his arms as they both huddled together underneath pushes and watched with amazement as Jonas transfer memories of snow into him and the child.

He slowly opened his eyes again and looked at Shane and Alicia.

"Do you know, Gregory?" Alicia asked. Shane only studied Gregory's expression.

"He has the same ability as you and the other Keepers, don't he?" Shane's voice was smooth and sure.

Alicia turned sharply to look at Shane. "Don't be foolish. He's a child. Gregory became Keeper when he was my age. It took him over five years to master it, right Gregory?"

Gregory shook his head. "He's right Alicia. It seems that the Runner does have the same ability. He's what they, the Community, would call a Receiver."

Both Shane and Alicia froze when they heard the name. "Receiver? You mean like the-"

"Yes." Gregory cut off Alicia.

Shane turned to Alicia. "I bet you anything it was _him_ who sent you to go find them. Just like when he asked us to go get-"

"That's enough Shane," Gregory said calmly, but firmly.

They all fell quiet as they looked out the window at the falling snowflakes.

* * *

Jonas awoke when he felt something warm and smooth touch his forehead.

"Wake up, Jonas," A soft voice said to him.

Jonas slowly opened his eyes and stared up into pale grey eyes. _Eyes like his._

He quickly sat up. He couldn't be back at the Community. He was sure Gregory had been real. The Keeper of Memories, he thought. He rubbed his eyes and looked around him.

Relief overflowed him as he realized he was in the same room he had been with Gregory. Then he turned to the young woman sitting at his bedside.

Her eyes were indeed like his, but her hair was brownish black. "So you're finally awake. It's been a day since you last woke."

"Where's Gabe?" Jonas asked quickly.

"He's okay. We fed him up for the last few days and gave him the nutrients he needed. It was a close call too. He just need some rest. You can go see him in another day or two." Then she stood up and smiled down at him.

Jonas decided he liked her. "What's your name?"

The woman went over and opened a clothes draw. "Do you think you can stand? I'll let you chose your clothes." She went over to him and helped him up. "Get dress and then come out. I'll go prepare some food for you."

Jonas wanted to ask her again for her name. Never in his life has a question of his ever gone unanswered. It was considered rude to ask someone a question, but after being the Receiver of Memory for a while, he was use to being answered.

Jonas came out wearing clothes he had chosen. It had been awkward at first at being able to chose his own clothes and have the clothes _colored_ and different styles. He had gone with a red shirt with white and blue stripes on the armband along with a pair of blue-green pants.

He felt happy to be able to see so many colors, but decided to not over due it. He looked around the living room. It was comfortable with one long couch and one arm chair facing the huge open window. His eyes took in the white snow all over ground outside and shivered at the thought of the bitter cold snow.

The door opened and a brown hair and eyes man came in. He wore a heavy green coat as when he saw Jonas, he hesitated.

"Hello, Jonas. Do you like it here so far?"

"Um, who are you?"

The man's smile brightened. "I'm Shane. You might not remember, but I brought you here to Rose."

"Is that her name?"

Shane nodded as he studied the young boy.

The door opened behind him again and a woman came in and pushed Shane gently. "Shane, you're going to get in trouble if Gregory finds out you left you sleigh uncared for."

Shane sighed and turned towards the door, but he turned back to Jonas. "Glad to meet you. When Rose says you're ready to go to school, we'll sign you up, okay? Oh, and this woman here-" He nudged towards the woman. "-Is Alicia. She was tracking you since you left your Community. I'll see you around Jonas."

He waved a hand over his head as he closed the door behind him.

Jonas smiled when Alicia turned to him. She hesitated just like Shane before she smiled slowly. "So you're Jonas? Where's this Gabe I've heard about From Gregory?"

"Rose said he's still resting..." Jonas looked around for Rose. "Where is she?"

Alicia studied the Runner. Her expression hardened then softens. "Why did you run away from your Community Jonas? It was dangerous of you to leave with Gabe too. Didn't you think about dying?"

Jonas turned to her. A look that she saw often on Gregory's face appeared on the young boy's youthful face. A look that made the looker feel as if they need to live a little longer and experience more pain to truly understand the burden in those sad worn eyes and tired face. "If I hadn't left, Gabe would have been released. I couldn't live with the man I call father who was to be the one who released Gabe, the only other person I truly loved beside the Giver..."

Alicia threw away the rumors she had heard throughout her years living with the Free; rumors saying that Runners had no emotions and were all a bunch of cowards. Yet this Runner here was very young, but had braved up and tried to save the one he loved.

Alicia went over to him and hugged him. "Well then, Runner Jonas. Welcome to the Free world of Ranok."

Jonas stiffened at the physical contact, but didn't want to offend her so he patted her on the back.

Alicia pulled back and laughed. "I'm sorry. I didn't ask for permission, did I?"

Jonas felt himself smiling at the woman's friendliness.

"I see you've met Alicia," said a calm voice. Jonas recognized the hard edged in the calm tone.

"Keeper Gregory!" Alicia nodded her head towards Gregory who was wearing a dark blue sweater that match his ice blue eyes. His black hair looked neater than the last time Jonas had seen him.

"Alicia, would you go find Rose for me? Tell her to meet us at my house." He beckoned towards Jonas to follow him.

Jonas stood still for a while then followed after the man when he walked through the door he had come out of.

Jonas and Gregory were walking through a clear walk away that seemed to be made of glass because Jonas could see the snow outside as if he was outside, except his feet were walking on a clear and smooth walk way of glass that made it look like they were walking in mid air from the outside.

"Where are we going?" Jonas asked as he followed the man.

Gregory didn't turn around as he said, "My house. There's someone that wants to meet you."

"Who?"

"You'll find out. Just wait." There was a silence that followed after his words. Jonas wanted to ask him so many questions. He felt like the way he was when he had first met the Giver.

Then Gregory said, "You've just arrived here, but you must be wondering about what Free and Runner is. The difference is that we are Free, while your community, Runners, have decided to cut off reality and kept Sameness. The Community you once lived in was running from reality. The Free people began with only a few people, but when others began to want something more and question Sameness, they decided to escape the new Sameness. Back than the Community didn't notice the missing people because Sameness was new, along with climate change and busy with trying to change genetic along with getting rid of color. By the time the Elders realized that people were running, they decided to create search planes. From then on until over three hundred years ago, there was an ongoing war between Frees and Runners. We wanted nothing more, but a better life than we had before. The Community and Runners and Elders wanted to make everything into Sameness.

"The war ended when the first Receiver was found and we don't know how it happened, but the Frees had their own Receiver except we call them the Keepers. It wasn't until a hundred years ago did the Free world decided to have five Keepers instead of one like how the Runners had only one Receiver like the Runners. We didn't want only one person to bear the burden. Me and the other Keepers are very different from your Giver though Jonas. We can not only give our memories to others, we can take away memories or take someone else's pain. We're pain relievers to a lot of people. They come to us to relieve themself from any painful memory, but unlike you and your Giver, the memories return to their true carrier. We are simply just Keepers of the Memory for a while and the emotions along with anything else from that memory stays with us and leave it's carrier, but will return to that person after a few days." Gregory said when he saw Jonas open his open to oppose.

Gregory opened the door and led Jonas into a living room. This one was different from Rose's. It was filled with books, lying or neatly stacked. The clean side had two small couches and one arm chair in front of a fireplace.

Jonas sat down one of the couch nearest to the arm chair Gregory had decided to sit on.

"Jonas, there may be some people here who will resent you because of the fact that you're a Runner. " Jonas stiffened. "It'll get better, I promise. It's just that there hasn't been that much Runners who is willing to leave the Community now. Plus we had an inside scoop that you were going to run away. Alicia, who you just met and Shane are both from the Community too."

"They are?"

Gregory nodded. "But unlike you, they were released when they were infants because they were weak twins. As we're talking, there is a twin sibling of Shane and Alicia out there somewhere. I wish I could say it never left any mark on them, but it did. It made them question themselves when they were children, but as they grew older, that uncertainty of themselves turned to hatred and pain towards the Community. I am just glad that they survived."

"Wait, that's not possible. If they were released as infants, how is it possible that they are alive?"

Gregory rubbed his chin. "Well, I have to admit, we do have someone who has power in the Community with us. For the last couple of decades, we have found a way to sneak in our medicine for release, which doesn't kill the released, only makes them look dead. Runners are so confident about their technology that they don't check the injections. When they are to dispose of the _'dead' _body, we quickly get the body out and back to the Free world where they'll get a second chance to live. Infants and the Elder are hard to save though. Especially the little ones since sometimes, they might use an overdose and cause the child to die. It saddens many of us when that happens, but we try and save as many _released_ Runners as much as we can."

Jonas stared at him with amazement. "You do all of this?"

Gregory nodded. "Keepers are like the Receiver for the Free world. We hold the strongest power. It's divided equally among the people though, but each Keeper is part of the counsel for the FMA; Five Major Attributes. I am part of the counsel of Travels and Supplies. Josh is part of the counsel of Law Judgment. Amelia is part of the counsel for Food and Healing. Bret is part of the counsel for Education, you'll meet him soon. Then there is Bethany that is part of the counsel of Arts and Trackers. You'll meet them soon enough, but before that someone wants to meet you."

He waved a hand and the door behind Jonas opened and Jonas nearly cried as he jumped from the couch and launched himself into the arms of the old man.

"Giver!" Jonas yelled with delight as tears flooded his eyes. He wiped them away and step back from the Giver. "I do not know why I am crying. I am not sad."

The Giver smiled down at the young boy and said, "Jonas, they are tears of joy, not sadness."

Jonas laughed a little. "There is such a thing?"

The Giver laughed too. He turned to Gregory who was still sitting down. The pale eyes of the Giver met the ice blue ones of Gregory.

"So we meet at last Giver." Gregory slowly stood up and walked over to them.

"You must be Gregory, the Keeper of Memories."

Gregory and the Giver made sight. The Giver looked old and worn out, while Gregory looked around his early thirties, but both of them had the eyes that have seen enough and held a great burden in each of them.

Suddenly they both smiled at each other as if they had just shared something.

"I want to thank you for saving Jonas and Gabe. Please thank Bethany for me on sending her Trackers after them too." The Giver said.

Gregory only shook his head. "We owed you a lot for what you have done for us. If it wasn't for you, we would have never been able to sneak in our replacement injections with the Communities'."

Jonas gasped. "It was you whose been helping the Free world?"

The Giver nodded. "I told you once Jonas, that I had the hearing-beyond. You didn't think I spent all my time just in the Annex, did you? After hearing music again, I told the Elders that I was to be left alone until I came out myself from my room in Annex. The Elders didn't question me and I left the Community without anyone thinking the wiser. I traveled far and found Ranok. At that time, Gregory wasn't the Keeper yet, but yes, I helped the Free and lied to my Community. It may have been wrong of me, but I was allowed to lie and why not lie for a good reason."

Jonas tried to figure it all out when the door, that he and Gregory had come from, opened.

Jonas heard Rose's voice before she came in.

"What do you need of me Keeper Gre-" Her voice trailed off at the end and Jonas saw the look of shock across her face.

Silence seemed to consume the room as Gregory and Jonas looked at Rose.

Before they knew it, Rose had thrown herself across the room and into the Giver's wide open arms.

"What..." Jonas began, but his question died on his lips when the Giver said Rose's full name.

"Rosemary..."

* * *

Thank you =)

-Gaoch


End file.
